The Enchanted Arrows
by Hanakin
Summary: My first fic! A new girl named Shikara joins Inu-Yasha, Kagome, Miroku, and Shippo... but something is different about her...
1. An Addition To The Party

An Addition To The Party  
  
Disclaimer: None of these characters are original (they belong to the great Rumiko Takahashi) except for Shikara.  
  
Author's Note: Hi, everyone! This is my first fanfic so give me comments but don't be too harsh : ) My name is Hanakin, which means "gold flower" in Japanese. Umm.. yeah, that's it for now! Enjoy my fanfic!  
  
Inu-Yasha, Kagome, Miroku, and Shippo moved slowly through the dense forest, searching for the remaining shards of the Shikon jewel. They were concentrating so hard on their path that they didn't notice a dark figure blocking their way.  
  
"Halt!" Shouted a voice.  
  
The four travelers looked up in surprise. There standing before them was a girl about Kagome's age. She wore the clothing of a boy, but her dirty blonde hair went down to her waist and was tied back with a pink ribbon (No, it was not a man dressed in drag!). The shadow of hate covered her face. In her hands she held a huge bow with a black arrow that was pointed at Kagome.  
  
Kagome drew back in fear, but Inu-Yasha scoffed, "It's not like we're going to kill you… who are you, anyway?"  
  
The girl raised her head with conceited pride. "I am Shikara, the archer of this forest. Who are you, and why are you passing over this land?"  
  
Inu-Yasha looked at Shikara and, deciding that she was trustworthy, answered, "We're just searching for the Shikon shards. Perhaps you know of their whereabouts?" Inu-Yasha asked with curiosity.  
  
"Ahhh," mused Shikara. "I believe I might. On the other side of this forest, there is said to a strange thing glistening in the water. Maybe it is what you are looking for." Shikara thought for a moment. Then she pointed her bow at Inu-Yasha, and the arrow turned red. Shikara gazed into his eyes and added slyly, "Perhaps you would like me to lead you there."  
  
"Of course," Inu-Yasha whispered softly. "Please be our guide."  
  
Kagome was startled. What was wrong with Inu-Yasha?!? Why wasn't he being more cautious? Shikara seemed so unfriendly and hostile. Perhaps she didn't know where she was going, or maybe she would even lead them into a trap.  
  
But Kagome remained silent, for Shikara's bow was still gripped tightly in her hand.  
  
Shikara gave a light nod to Inu-Yasha, and the five of them continued on through the forest. Kagome, however, was still deep in thought. "Shikara must have some hidden purpose! Something is just not right…" 


	2. Anger and Love

Anger and Love  
  
By the time that everyone stopped to make camp for the night, Kagome was filled with anger. Ever since Shikara had joined their group, Inu- Yasha, Miroku, and Shippo directed all their attention towards Shikara. They seemed overly interested in her, and in the few hours since they had met, Miroku had already asked her to bear his child. Kagome had been shocked when Shikara casually replied, "I'll consider it. Ask me later."  
  
As soon as Kagome got a chance, she hurried to a nearby pond, took off her clothes, and swam into the water. She was just beginning to relax when she saw Shikara sitting in a tree above her.  
  
"You love him, don't you." It was a statement, not a question. Kagome couldn't find a response. She just looked up at Shikara with bewilderment.  
  
"You love Inu-Yasha. And I'm here to show you that he won't be yours. You're angry right now. You hate me." Shikara smirked. "And I hate you."  
  
Kagome gave a sound of disgust. "So that's why you're helping us! Just to follow Inu-Yasha, help yourself, and distract us from our search of the Shikon shards!" Kagome gathered her courage and shouted, "Well, I won't let you do that! In fact, I'm going to Inu-Yasha right now and telling him what your motives really are!"  
  
"NO!" In the blink of an eye, Shikara once again was holding her bow with a black arrow and was aiming it at Kagome. "You're not going to do anything! You can't stop me."  
  
With that, Shikara shot an arrow at Kagome's heart and disappeared among the branches. 


	3. Unknown Whereabouts

Unknown Whereabouts  
  
The arrow sped through the air and pierced Kagome right below her neck. Though strangely, it didn't hurt. Kagome felt as if the arrow was spinning slowly inside her, and that she was being pulled by a powerful force under the water and to the bottom of the pond…  
  
"…What's… happening…?" Kagome thought, for she was paralyzed and couldn't speak.  
  
When Kagome opened her eyes, she was lying near the pond on the damp ground (fully clothed!). Miroku and Shippo were hovered over her.  
  
"Kagome, are you okay?" Miroku asked.  
  
"What happened to you??" Shippo demanded.  
  
Kagome tried to sit up, but she felt weak. "I don't know…" She tried to remember what had happened, but her mind was blank. "Where did you find me?"  
  
"You were floating on your back in the middle of pond. There seemed to be this black mist around you. When we got you out of the water, you were unconscious. You've been like this for almost an hour." Miroku looked at the pond, then back at Kagome. "By the way, have you seen Inu- Yasha or Shikara?"  
  
"What?!?" Kagome cried. "You mean they've disappeared?"  
  
"We're not sure. Right before we found you, when we left camp, Inu- Yasha was sitting next to the fire, staring into it. But when Shippo went back to get you a blanket, he wasn't anywhere to be seen." Miroku studied Kagome's face and raised an eyebrow. "Is there something going on that we don't know about?"  
  
Kagome's memory suddenly began to come back to her, and she remembered what Shikara told her before… before she had shot that arrow into her heart. The arrow… what was it? It couldn't be a regular arrow, because it hadn't hurt. Then Kagome looked down at her chest and realized that she didn't have a wound. Instead, there was a small black heart where the arrow had pierced her. Kagome tried to rub it off, but it remained. "This is getting scary," Kagome thought with fear.  
  
Kagome got up with a start. Her face was filled with determination as she faced Miroku and Shippo. "We have to find Inu-Yasha and Shikara as soon as possible. Inu-Yasha may be in great danger. We must hurry!"  
  
She ran into the forest, with Miroku and Shippo following close behind. 


	4. A Long Search

A Long Search  
  
Kagome, Miroku, and Shippo looked everywhere for Inu-Yasha, but after searching for an hour, they got very tired, and Shippo suggested that they stop and rest.  
  
Kagome wanted to stop, but she said, "No, I'll keep looking. You guys wait here. I'll be back in a few minutes, okay?"  
  
She continued down the trail and looked on both sides of her. No, there was nothing, no activity whatsoever. Wait, what was that…?  
  
Kagome hurried off the trail and into the thick grass. There, on the ground, was Inu-Yasha. He had been stripped of most of his clothing, and seemed to be unconscious. Kagome looked around her. This had to be the work of Shikara! But she saw no one.  
  
After checking Inu-Yasha's heartbeat and pulse, Kagome was comforted by the fact that he was still alive. But she was very frightened by Inu- Yasha's condition. After all, he was half-demon. Shikara must be quite powerful if he could not defend himself.  
  
Suddenly, Kagome had felt a pang of guilt. If she had spoken up earlier in the day when they had first met Shikara, then maybe this wouldn't have happened!  
  
"I'm sorry, Inu-Yasha," Kagome murmured. She laid her head against Inu-Yasha's body.  
  
Then she realized that Miroku and Shippo were standing by the trail, looking at her with raised eyebrows.  
  
"Did we come at the wrong time…?" Miroku asked.  
  
"No, no! We're not doing anything! No, nothing at all!" Kagome shrieked. Then she sighed. "It appears that the same thing happened to Inu-Yasha that happened to me. He's unconscious. But I don't see Shikara anywhere."  
  
Unexpectedly, Inu-Yasha began to stir. He saw Kagome, Miroku, and Shippo looking down eagerly at him.  
  
"What…happened…to me?"  
  
Then Inu-Yasha realized that he was half naked and got up screaming. "You perverts! Why didn't you tell me! Go away… or give me something to wear!!"  
  
Miroku tossed his cloak to Inu-Yasha, which he put on hastily. Before anyone could speak, and evil laugh was heard from the branches above…guess who? 


	5. Arrows and Tears

Arrows and Tears  
  
Kagome looked up into the face of Shikara. "What do you want this time? And please explain to us what has happened, and the power of those arrows you have!"  
  
"Ahhh, you want to know about my bow and arrows? Well, I'll explain them to you. I have black and red arrows. If I shoot two black arrows into someone, then they will hate everyone for the rest of their life. If I shoot two red arrows into someone, then they will love only me for the rest of their life. The arrows leave heart marks on the body it has pierced. Kagome, you have a black heart. And Inu-Yasha, you have a red heart."  
  
Thousands of thoughts raced through Kagome's mind. Her life, and Inu- Yasha's, were in grave danger. Kagome was one shot away from hating everyone for the rest of her life. And what if that came back with her into the real world? She would hate her family and friends there, too!  
  
"So, if you don't mind," continued Shikara, "I would like to finish my work." She held up her bow.  
  
"No," Kagome thought, but she was paralyzed again. "No, you can't do this. NO! I HATE YOU!"  
  
Even though Kagome's mouth did not move, she heard someone speaking the words. As Kagome looked around her, everything seemed to move in slow motion. She saw Shippo crying and trying to get away. She saw Miroku taking the bandages off his wrist. And she saw Inu-Yasha, running towards her. He was the one who was shouting the words.  
  
Inu-Yasha fell on top of Kagome, blocking her from the black arrow flying through the air. Kagome gasped as the arrow pierced Inu-Yasha's back.  
  
A scream of horror came from the tree. Red mist circled around Shikara. Out of the mist came the form of two large hands, which grabbed Shikara's bow and snapped it in half. The arrows rose into the air above Shikara. Another scream, this time from pain, came from Shikara as the arrows came down together and stabbed her. The red mist engulfed her and she vanished. And something told Kagome that it was for good.  
  
Kagome came to her senses. "Inu-Yasha, are you okay?" There was no reply. "Inu-Yasha?!?"  
  
Miroku came and kneeled by them. "I don't know what happens when a red arrow and a black arrow pierces you. But you're very lucky, Kagome." He smiled at her. "If Shikara had shot Inu-Yasha with another red arrow before she tried to shoot you, then he wouldn't have loved you enough to save you. The two red arrows would have made him only care about Shikara." Miroku's face became grim as he looked at Inu-Yasha. "However, I don't know what will happen to Inu-Yasha. I am doubtful that the red and black arrows together will leave him as he was."  
  
Kagome really felt guilty now. Inu-Yasha had risked his life to save her, and now…  
  
After Miroku and Shippo walked away, Kagome began to cry. Her tears glistened in the darkness. They trickled down her cheeks and dropped onto Inu-Yasha's chest.  
  
The tears fell on the red heart, and as if by magic, washed it away. Kagome stared in awe. Then she hurriedly turned Inu-Yasha over, wiped her eyes, and spread her tears over Inu-Yasha's back. The black heart also vanished within seconds.  
  
Now Kagome cried with joy, because perhaps Inu-Yasha would be okay.  
  
WARNING: This section is extremely out of character, but I DON'T CARE! I want a romantic ending!!!  
  
Almost as in response, Inu-Yasha opened his eyes. Without giving Inu- Yasha a chance to say something, Kagome smiled at him and whispered, "Thank you for saving my life, Inu-Yasha…is there anything I can do to express my gratitude?"  
  
Inu-Yasha closed his eyes and asked, "Kagome, Shikara told me before she shot the red arrow at me that you loved me. Is that…true?"  
  
Kagome looked at the ground. "Yeah…but I doubted that you loved me back." She glanced at him. "…Do you?"  
  
Inu-Yasha blushed. "You remind me so much of Kikyo…"  
  
Together, they looked up at the stars, and sat gazing at them for a long, long time.  
  
~*~  
  
The next day, Kagome, Inu-Yasha, Miroku, and Shippo continued through the forest. Everything was going peacefully until…  
  
"Hey! What's that?" Shippo cried as he stared up into the trees.  
  
Before the others looked up, they knew that it just had to Shikara, returning to bring them trouble. BUT- they were wrong.  
  
Kagome looked up and saw something strange about one of the large branches. She squinted her eyes and saw that there was writing on it. "I'll be back," it said, and next to the writing was a small drawing of an arrow dashing through the air.  
  
ThE eNd!!! 


End file.
